Coupling and yoke connection



I. H. .MILLIKEN.

COUPLING AND YOKE CONNECTION.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.6. 1920.

1,404,878. Patented Jan. 31, 1922.v

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

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H. MILUKEN. COUPLING AND YQKE CONNECTION. APPLICATION FILED AUG-5, 1920- 1,404,878, Patented Jan. 31, 1922.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

ha rs s s e ISAAC n. MILLIKEL EQFnsrrnwern ."ennnsrnveivre, essrenon. T0 TH MeconwAY I a router cor trans or rrr'rsnunen, PENNSYLVANIA, A conro'ne'rron orrnrm- SYLVANIA.

Specificati on of Letters Patent.

COUPLING AND YOKE CONNECTION.

Patented Jan. 31, 1922,

Application filed August 6, 1920. Serial No. 401,607.

To all to/tom it may cone/21in:

Be it known that I, Isaac H. llITLL-TKEN, a citizen of the United States. residing at Aspinwall. in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania. have invented certain new and useful Improvements in 0011-.

)ling and Yoke Connections; and I do here- 5 declare the following to be a full, clear,

and exact description of the invention, such' as will enable othersskilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same. I

My invention relates to a coupler and yoke connection for the draft rigging of railway cars whereby couplers ofthe type commonly applied to freight cars may be made avail.- able for use in equipping passenger cars where it is desirable that the coupler shall be capable of swinging laterally with re spect to the car body when thetrain passes around a curve. Car couplers designed for application to freight cars are usually in capable of any substantial horizontal swing ing movement with respect to the yoke, be-

ing commonly rigidly connected to the lat-,

ter or else capable only of longitudinal. sliding movement with respect thereto. My invention provides means for pivotally connecting such couplers to draft yokes in a strong, simple, durable and efiicient mannerpermitting them to execute extended lateral swinglng movements. 7

The primary features of the invention,

generally stated, consist in providing a coupler stem extension which is adapted to be pivotally connected to a draft yoke and which has a forwardly opening socket for receiving the rear end of the stem of the coupler, the latter having a transversely extending horizontal slot adjacent its rear end for the reception of a key whose outer ends project into key receiving recesses formed on the interior of the said'socket. The key constitutes means for transmitting draft.

strains from the coupler stem to the stem extension member and for preventing relative movement of these parts while the coupler is executing a bufling movement. The socket at the forward end of the coupler stem extension is of a character enabling the rear end of thecoupler stem to be inserted after the connecting key has been positioned in the slot in the coupler stem, and said socket is so designed that after the coupler stem has been inserted and elevated to assembled p0- ends of said key.

.for the rear end of the coupler stem, and by bracing said web by means of the oppositely 55 disposed spaced'walls and a longitudinally extending web between said walls, said last named web being integrally united to the transversely extending web in alinement with the coupler stem and. the said spaced walls being united to the transversely extendlng web ad acent the outer edges of the rear end of thecoupler stem. Bufling shocks .which be communicated to the coupler stem extension through the connecting key are efiiciently resisted by providing the opposite sides of the coupler stem extension at points adjacent the rear edge of the key with braces extending inwardly from the outer In the drawings illustrating the invention, the scope whereof is pointed out in the claims,

Figure 1 is a plan View of'a coupler and yoke connection embodying the invention, the coupler head. a portion of the coupler stem extension, which may be of any desired length. and a portion of the draft yoke being omitted.

Fig. 2 isa side elevation of the construction.

Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the devices shown in Fig. 1.

F g. 4: is a detail vertical section line 4 4, Fig. 1. p

Fig. 5 is a detail sectional view on the line 5-5, Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a detail section on the line 6-6.

Fig. 7 is a transverse section on the line 77, Fig. 2. v y

Fig. 8 is a sectional view corresponding to Fig. 5,but illustrating a modification of the invention.

Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the modified form of key shown in Fig. 8.

In the drawings 1 indicates the stem of acar coupler, and 2 is a coupler'stem extension through. the intermediacy of which the coupler is pivotally connected to the 110 on the draft yoke 3. For the purpose of forming the pivotal connection of the draft yoke with the coupler stem extension the, latter may tending horizontal slot 9 which receives a correspondingly shaped key 11. This key partakes of the draft and buffing movements of the coupler stems The coupler stem extension is provided at its forward end with a socket 12 which receives the rear end of the coupler stem, and

is formed with oppositely disposed key'receiving recesses 13 oi greater height at their rear ends than at their forward ends and which terminate in advance of the innerend of the socket. These key recesses 13 thus afiord front and rear shoulders 1 1and 15,

respectively, which engage and vertically overlap the corresponding edges of the key 11 at its outer end. In order to allow the key 11 whenmounted in the slot at the rear end of'the coupler stem 1 to hebrought t9 assembled position. the socket 12 is made of greater height than the rear end of the coupler stem, thus permitting the latter to be inserted in the socket at an elevation al-- lowing the key to pass beneath the forward shoulders 14. The coupler stem is subsequently elevated in the socket sufiiciently to position the key in horizontal alinement with the shoulders 14.

The coupler stem 1' is preferably maintained in elevated orassembled position within the socket of the couplerstem extension 2 by means oi a plurality of fillers 16 and 17, respectively, which are interposed between the coupler stemand the floor of the coupler stem extension. These filler members are so designedas to afiord' an extended hearing for the rear end of the coupler stem, thus minimizing the tendency of the coupler to droop. For convenience of assembly and removal these fillers, which are preferably connected, are positioned and withdrawn through an opening 18 which pierces the lower wall of the socket portion ofthe coupler stem extension so as to afl'ord communication with said socket. The opening. 18 in the lower wall of the socket 12 is also advantageous in that it' provides means for readily removing the core employed for forming the socket and permits convenient access to the interior of [the socket for the purpose-of removing any inequalities in thecastlng which might in-' terfere with the passage of the key 11 or its proper engagement with the shoulders 14 and 15. The forward filler 16 is preferably provided at its rear endon its under side with a pair of spaced perforated lugs 19, and the rear filler 17 is'preferably provided with a forwardly extending periorated arm 20 which is adapted to extend between the said lugs 19. A cotter 21 which passes through the perforated lugs 19 and arm 20 serves to connect the fillers and retain them in assembledpositions. V

The rear end of the socket 12 in the coupler stem extension 2 is closed by a transverse web 21 affording azseat or hearing for the rear end of the coupler stem 1. Rearwardly of said transversely extending web the stem extension 2 is preferably made of hollow cross section so as to afford spaced side walls 22 and spaced top and bottom walls 23 which are integrally united to the transversely extending web 21in substantial alineinent with the edges of the rear end of i the coupler stem. \Vithin the hollow portion of the coupler stem extension formed by the oppositely disposed walls 22 and 23 is preterably formed a longitudinally extending web 2 1- which is integrally united to the transverse web 21 in alinement with they coupler stem 1. T he web 2 1 which is united through.- out its length to the spaced walls 23, being in the direct line of bufling strain imparted to the coupler stem extension 2 by the coupler stem 1 serves to reinforce the transversely extending web '21 against hufiing shocks in a very efficient manner.

The coupler stem extension 2 is preferably fashioned upon opposite sides adjacent the rear edge of the key 11 with external bracing ribs 25 which are in horizontal alin'ement with said key and extend inwardly from the outer ends thereof so as to support the key engaging shoulders 15 against bufiing strains imparted thereto.

The modification seen in Figs. 8 and 9 shows a construction employing a slightly ditl'erent form of key for connecting the coupler stem 1 to the coupler stem extension 2. In the modified construction the key 26 is formed adjacent its outer ends with flat edge faces 27 which therefore, afford a somewhat greater bearing area, against the shoulders 1 K and 15' of the coupler stem extension. The central portion, 28 of the key 26 lying within the lines of the coupler stem 1 has rounded edgesfas in the caseof the key 11 heretofore described. 1

I claim r V r 1. In a device of the character indicated, the combination witha coupler stem having a transversely extending horizontal slot adjacent its rear end, of a coupler stem extension. adapted to be pivotally connected to a draft yoke and having a forwardly opening socket adapted to receive the rear end. of said coupler stem, said socket being of greater height than the rear end of said coupler stem and being formed with oppositely disposed key receiving recesses which are of greater height at their rear ends than at their forward ends, a key extending through the slot of said coupler stem and having its ends projecting into said key receiving recesses, and a plurality of filler members interposed between said coupler stem extension and coupler stein for sup porting the latter in elevated position in said socket, said coupler stem extension being provided with an aperture extending through its lower side and affording communication with said socket to permit said filler members to be inserted and removed,

and said key constituting means for trans means for transmitting draft forces from said coupler stem to said coupler stem extension and for preventing rearward movement of said coupler stem with respect to said coupler stem extension during a buiiing movement of said coupler stem, and means for retaining said coupler stem in elevated position in said socket of the coupler stem extension, the surfaces of said coupler stem within said socket being free from external shoulders or projections, and said socket being of greater height than the rear end of said coupler stem and being formed with o positely disposed recesses affording shoulders adapted to engage the opposite edges of said key.

3. In a device of the character indicated, the combination with a'coupler stem having a transversely extending horizontal slot adjacent its rear end, of a coupler stem exten sion adapted to be connected to a draft yoke and having a forwardly opening socket adapted to receive the rear end of said coupler stem, said socket being of greater height than the rear end of said coupler stem and having a transversely extending having its ends projecting into said key re- I ceiving recesses, and means for retaining said coupler stem in elevated position in said socket of the coupler stein extension.

4. In a device of the character indicated, the combination with a coupler stem, of a coupler stem extension adapted to be connected to a draft yoke and having a forwardly opening socket for receiving the rear end of said coupler stem, said socket being of greater heightthan the rear end of said coupler stem and having a transversely extending rear wall against which the rear end of said coupler stem is adapted to bear and beingformed with oppositely disposed rccesses which are of greater height at their rear ends than at their forward ends, key means carried by said coupler stem and projecting into said recesses, and means for retaining said coupler stem in elevated position in said socket, said retaining means comprising a plurality of downwardly removable detachably connected filler members interposed between said coupler stem exten sion and coupler stem, and said coupler stem extension being provided with a downwardly opening aperture communicating with said socket and permitting said filler members to be inserted and removed.

5. In a device of the character indicated, the combination with a coupler stem having a transversely extending horizontal slot adjacent its rear end, of a coupler stem extension adapted to be connected to a draftyoke and having a forwardly opening socket adapted to receive the rear end of said coupler stem, said socket being of greater height than the rear end of said coupler stem and being formed with key receiving recesses which are of greater height at their rear ends than at their forward ends and which terminate in advance of the inner end of said socket, a key extending through the slot of said coupler stem and projecting into said key receiving recesses, and means for retaining said coupler stem in elevated position in said socket, said coupler stem extension being integrally provided upon opposite sides adjacent the rear edge of said key with braces extending inwardly from the outer ends of said key.

In testimony whereofI affix my signature. ISAAC H. MILLIKEN. 

